Changing Us
by allybrose
Summary: Hermione Granger thought once a decision was made it couldn't be changed, but she was wrong. Harry is dead, Ron is missing, and Hogwarts is now a Ruin, all Hermione has is a mission. Dumbledore's plan B. Time is now in the hands of Hermione and she'll do everything in her power to stop this war from happening, even at the cost of her life.
1. Chapter One

**Chapter One**

 **2nd of May, 1998**

 **Falling Through Time**

Hermione Granger stared at the battle field in horror. People were falling one by one either dead or dying and there was nothing Hermione could do. Eyes dilated and hair matted with blood Hermione stumbled into the middle of the chaos. Her wand hand was already twitching with overuse and exhaustion. Her arm was aching in pain from the torture Bellatrix inflicted on her, which still felt raw and new no matter what healing spell she tries on it. She trudged forward swallowing down her fears and pain to get to her destination.

The tattered and battle scarred castle was haunted with the dying screams of the battle's victims. Hermione could not tell if the screams were possessed by the enemy or her ally, but she hoped for the later. She tucked her beaded bag over her battered shoulder ignoring the pain it inflicted. She walked over the dead bodies and debris following the hall that lead to the outside entrance. She couldn't help but feel tears trail down her face from the total annihilation that was done to her home and friends.

Harry was dead.

Ron was separated from her when the death eaters were ordered to wipe the school out. The halls darkened looking more morose and scary by the second, and the paintings were empty of any people. It felt desolate and foreboding to Hermione Granger. The hairs on the back of her neck stood up in warning, she quickly twisted her aching body around firmly aiming her wand.

A blonde pale boy the same age as Hermione stood before her, a shadow of his past self. His hand trembled with hesitation while Hermione held strong, but her eyes wavered. The blonde gripped his wand tighter, but still did not cast a spell, neither did Hermione. A stalemate Hermione would have to overcome.

"Expelliarmus!" Hermione retrieved his wand easily disarming him.

"Draco, what are you doing here?" Hermione questioned already knowing the answer. Draco did not seem surprised by his defeat, and simply put his hands in his pocket as if he was speaking to an old friend and not in the middle of a war.

"Just…doing what I'm told." He shrugged, his sagging eyes shined with what looked like regret. Hermione didn't flinch from his sad expression, and instead broke Draco's wand in front of him. He froze, eyes wide and full of hate. "You really are just a stupid mudblood." He muttered, a bitter malicious tone leaking out of his dark words. Hermione didn't falter and instead walked away, turning back to her original destination. Draco was always a coward and she didn't feel threatened by leaving her back open to him.

Draco didn't follow and no one else luckily stumbled upon her, but she feared what that could mean for the others outside. She pushed the huge decorative castle doors with all of her might. She did not truly believe she would find an open graveyard when she opened those doors. Hermione stumbled forward, holding her breath in fear someone would hear her and attack. Her bravery could only go so far, and it was running out, she believed. She looked down at all of her fellow classmates and teachers strewn across the entrance, the building crumbling onto their bodies as if wanting to bury them itself, and could only feel numb. Walking forward her foot caught onto something she did not want to see. Looking down she saw the dead body of Neville Longbottom with the sword clutched in his long gangly hands.

Hermione clutched her mouth with both hands to keep herself from loudly sobbing. She jumped away now running around the court yard, needing to find Harry or Ron throughout the mess. She needed to find their bodies before she left, she would not leave if she did not find them. She needed to see them. Their tattered clothes with their different crest were all that was left of some, others were more brutally killed than the rest; some of them only resembled ash. Walking farther ahead she saw the one lone body left untouched by the rest, a dark head of hair and what looked like glass surrounded his face.

She ran towards him knowing exactly who it is, seeing it again with her own eyes before Ron and her were separated. Feeling empty and tired she fell to the crumbling floor and reached out to Harry's cold pale face. Tears welled up in her eyes as she cleans the scattered glass and blood away from him, desperately trying to recreate the lively look Harry always had. Not caring about her back being open for attack she clutched Harry's body with sad desperation, her eyes tightly closed, trying to get rid of the world around her.

"Harry, you were supposed to be the one that lived!" She cried venomously into Harry's sullied shirt. "We were the ones that promised to protect you…" She couldn't further comprehend any more tragedies. She could feel depression sink into her heart like a cold thick poison that couldn't be sucked out. There was nothing left. Ron was gone, either dead or missing, everyone was dead and there was no one left to save the world from Voldemort's viscous hands.

She stopped her breath, stilling herself, desperately wishing she could become a part of the decaying castle rather than a living human being. Shadows surrounded her and she could see them reaching for her slowly like one of her childhood nightmares. Why is this happening to us? How could Harry have died for nothing? This constant whirl of questions ran through her head like I never ending tornado.

She may be knowledgeable about everything textbook and could always save Harry and Ron from their brash decisions, but she has never had to face utter hopelessness. Her face buried in Harry's shirt, and then she began to count to three. One, she pats Harry's hair lovingly; Two, she put Harry's broken glasses into her beaded bag; Three, she stood up with all the force she could muster and faced off with the six death eaters surrounding her.

Blurs of colors and nonverbal spells were mentally shoved at Hermione like a cascading storm. None of them lethal but detrimental to her health. Only a few landed on Hermione's strong shield. The last burst of adrenaline saved her from most of the excruciating curses, like the cuts that wouldn't heal or the bursting wounds that felt like oozing lava. She forced her face to stay stony cold, not willing to show any weakness to these sick bastards.

Her once favorite purple sweater was now soaked with blood that looked like a warm violet. Ignoring the idea that the death eaters were playing with her she decides to pick up the pace and throws her wand arm in the air propelling attack after attack.

"Avada Kedavra," one fell to their immediate death, and Hermione's sense of guilt faded into just a slight itch. "Fulgari!" What looked like a rope made from light shot out of her wand and twisted itself around one of the death eaters making them immobile. Four were left and they did not look like they were playing games anymore. Using a nonverbal spell once again Hermione cursed one before sprinting away, her eyes still on her attackers, never giving her back to them.

They didn't speak another spell, deciding she was worth a damn. Her heart started to pick speed but her body was losing its' adrenaline boost. Her mind was getting foggy and stumbling over the bodies of past friends did not make her state of mind any better. The death eaters swooped around her corralling her like sheep. She was spinning around in a circle in order to meet each of their wands.

Clutching her beaded bag with her left hand and her wand in her right she could only force herself to call on one more spell to get away from them. Quickly without giving the death eaters a chance to finish her off she nonverbally casts flipendo with as much strength as possible.

The last few death eaters were thrown back by Hermione's last ditch effort to get away. Climbing over the rubble she throws herself across the last bit of the entrance, and decides last second to hide behind the pillars and rubble near the bridge leading out of Hogwarts. She knew that bridge was a death sentence, no one would be able to reach the end and she would not be able to fly away without being hit. The only thing she could do was hide, even if that gave a sour taste in Hermione mouth. She was no fool to try apparition in her state either.

A memory like no other brought hopeful tears to her eyes as she slowly put the beaded bag on her lap. The cuts her shoulder started to leak hot blood onto the beaded bag, giving it a duller brown coloring. Hermione trembled with anxiety as she opened it with trepidation, looking up every few seconds just in case. Thinking about the object of her desire causing it to pop into reality and into her bloody hands. Holding it with the utmost care she looked down at Dumbledore's Time Turner.

Her smile came and went when thinking about the obvious rules and limitations time turners had, the idea of even breaking them could brought a chill of fear down her spine. Putting it on she thought back to what Dumbledore told her the day before his death.

 _"Dumbledore, you needed me for something?" She smiled happily at who she considered the most powerful wizard in the world. His "office," if you must call it that, was covered with colorful objects. Some looking foreign and strange and others looking like everyday items, but what always caught her eye was the mountains of disorganized books lying about. In every crook and cranny millions of yet to be published books flew about, or lost to time manuscripts strewn about._

 _"Hermione, sit down. Would you like a lemon drop?" The merriment that was always in Dumbledore's eyes seemed faded and less evident, but his warmth did not deter when he patted the chair across his desk. Hermione complied the headmaster's request and sat comfortably in the large velvet chair. Dumbledore stayed standing turning his back to her to pet his phoenix. She looked on in confusion, wondering just why she was here instead of Harry._

 _"How has your day been?" Dumbledore asked, but still did not turn to meet her head on._

 _"It was eventful." Hermione decided not to commit to the answer, not wanting to show how much fear she held these days when walking to classes. Dumbledore chuckled, it sounded light and airy like a forlorn bell on a Christmas sled._

 _"Hermione, you rarely don't speak your mind." Dumbledore countered strolling back to his large extravagant wooden chair. He looked Hermione straight in the eyes, and she soon started to feel a turning in her stomach like something very bad was about to be said._

 _"I-I feel that it is getting more and more difficult to say that I am not worried for our future, headmaster," Hermione trailed off not knowing how to explain this foreboding feeling in the pit of her stomach._

 _With a knowing look, Dumbledore took off a long chain that held an unusual time turner in his trembling hands. Her eyes widened and her hands clenched the chair's cushions tightly, she did not understand where this was going, and she did not know if she wanted to. Dumbledore smiled sadly at Hermione's tense reaction, a look of understanding morphing his face._

 _"Harry must not know what is to be said in this room," Hermione nodded not fully comprehending what she just promised. "I'm about to give you the plan B that I have been creating since Harry Potter's birth Hermione Granger. This is something that cannot be taken lightly and should be a last resort…"_

 _"What are you talking about?" Hermione croaked, a look of distrust and confusion clear on her face._

 _"The room is impenetrable, there is no way for anything we are saying to get out and the only liability will be us and this time turner." Dumbledore spoke contemplating the oddly colored time turner, and if Hermione looked at it even closer it looked like the sand was glowing. "You must give me an oath that you will not say anything to anyone, including Ron Weasley and Harry Potter, of this plan."_

 _"I vow it Dumbledore." Hermione exclaimed taking offense that he couldn't just believe her, but had to force the words out of her. A soft breeze flowed around her as if sealing the deal itself. A spell Hermione could not decipher, and this only made her more anxious._

 _"This time turner is mine, and is special not only because of that, but because I have been tampering with it for years." Hermione did not interrupt and filed the information with all the care in the world, not wanting to miss a word. "Since the very beginning I have been working on a time turner that could go farther into the past than a few hours. The idea is simple and something people have been working at since it was invented." He put the time turner on his desk, leaving it there for Hermione to admire and fear at the same time. Her eyes looked over it like a hungry bear sizing up a large fish. She could not turn her eyes away. "People have come close to making it work, but there were certain factors not taken into account."_

 _"What would that be?" Hermione questioned, a hint of suspicion lacing her voice._

 _"Do you see how the sand is special, not like anything you've ever seen before?"_

 _"But I thought the charm was was important to the time turner, not the sand itself?"_

 _"For a normal time turner you would be correct Granger, but this is no normal time turner. This is the one and only time turner that can travel years into the past." Dumbledore revealed. Hermione stared at the magical device as if all of her problems have been answered!_

 _"That means we can save everyone! You need to go into the past now!" Hermione exclaimed loudly standing from her chair. She did not quite grasp or care at the moment at how she was talking to her Headmaster._

 _"No, Hermione. We cannot change anything."_

 _"What do you mean?" She shouted, venom leaking into her voice._

 _"This is our last resort, and I would think with all of your dealing with time turners you would understand that Miss Granger." Dumbledore gave her a disapproving look that put Hermione back into reality. She sat back down slowly feeling like a misbehaved puppy._

 _"Why am I here Headmaster?" She asked furrowing her brow in confusion._

 _"You will be the one to execute the plan if everything goes wrong." Dumbledore smiled down at Hermione Granger, a sadness enveloping his once twinkling eyes._

 _"Oh," what could she say to that? Hours passed by as Dumbledore divulged lengthy descriptions on how and why the time turner was created and why she was the one for the job, rather than Harry._

 _"When you travel back do not forget that you will not be able to travel forward. This time line would not exist because you would have changed it, and there is no way to change it back." The very idea brought chills to Hermione, and she hoped for dear life that she would not have to use it. "You can only travel 20 or so years into the past, maybe one or two more if you push the limits, and there may be side effects if this is not handled correctly." Dumbledore warned. Hermione took this all in, not looking away for one second._

 _"I understand Dumbledore," Hermione nodded her head in solemn understanding._

 _"There is one vital thing left," He looked away from Hermione and instead glance back down at the time turner. "You must make a certain sacrifice for the device to work, either figuratively or literally. It just needs to be a sacrifice, and since you must go to its limit, you must make a very meaningful one."_

She would never forget those words, the last words he ever spoke to her, the next night Dumbledore died and everything came crashing down. Pushing herself onto her feet she trembled all over, and the pain coursing through her body from all the curses was making her senses muddy. She couldn't just make any sacrifice and she couldn't focus on anything other than the plan Dumbledore drilled into her. Taking one large gulp of air she pushed off the crumbling wall and ran towards the bridge, certain death almost eminent. Her legs burned and her skin felt like it was melting into her bones, the odd feeling making her stumble, but she got back up and continued running.

The swishing sound of death eaters was the last warning bell she got before they appeared near her, almost nicking her right where she stood. Gripping the time turner in her hand she climbed the bridge's end and looked down into the dark emptiness.

"What are you doing little girl?" One taunted, now willing to play with her again. She looked back to see them slowly closing in on her, and all their wands pointing straight at her. She gulped giving one more glance down the never-ending pit.

"Are you trying to kill yourself? Isn't this laughable? Go ahead, jump!" The second one cackled excitedly.

She held her breath, closed her eyes, and leapt off the bridge with a few curses hitting her on the way down. The dark abyss wrapped around her, and gave Hermione one more thing to be afraid of. Hermione made her sacrifice, her life was at the stake of a time turner that has never been used before. She turned the knob of the time turner twenty-one times. Everything went black for Hermione Granger.


	2. Chapter Two

**Chapter Two**

 **2** **nd** **of September 1977**

 **Crash Landing**

The marauders all ate around the Gryffindor table with great excitement, and the reason for the unending amusement is knowing everyone else's food was contaminated with what they called the "Hogwarts' Pride" Potion. The students in Gryffindor were the first to succumb to the marauders' prank, much to the chagrin of Sirius, who wanted the Slytherins to be the first to feel the prank's wrath.

The Gryffindor table's noses started to turn into lion muzzles and their hair morphed into thick golden manes. Gryffindor was laughing with amusement, some growling and others petting each other's manes, but all were enjoying the odd predicament. Hufflepuff was next, their hands soon morphed into large awkward badger paws and their hair all soon had one nice white streak running down the middle of their heads.

James snickered into his hands believing they all looked more like skunks than badgers. Ravenclaws were not too far behind as one unlucky student began to freak out about their nose and mouth turning into a large black beak. One girl giggled at the feathers that were soon growing out of her head, replacing her dark long hair.

Lastly, to all of the marauders' excitement, the Slytherin's turn were next. All of their heads comically morphed into snakes, slithery tongues and all. They all hissed in unison glaring at each other trying to find the perpetrators. The marauders' laughs were loud and full of exuberant cheer, none of the teachers took part in this predicament, knowing full well the people who did this.

The only student that was not hit with "Hogwarts' Pride" was smart and sensible Lily Evans. She guessed they were up to something when she saw how peculiar they were about what they chose to eat, they usually dig in without a second thought, she mused. She also noticed how anxious they looked when they watched the other tables, especially the Slytherins. She wisely chose not to eat until the prank would pass, knowing she would not be able to stop the prank in time, so she became a bystander once again. She sighed, irritated with the whole lot of them.

The spell soon wore off and everyone but the Slytherin table was laughing in good cheer, even some of the teachers were chuckling. They were still very much in trouble, as far as the professors were concerned, but for right now they were allowed to have their fun.

That was until everything came crashing down in the form of a girl. A burst of light exploded into the great hall, screams from everywhere bounced across the large dining hall. The professors stood immediately with their wands taken out, all of them held fear in their eyes. The light that burst into the room crashed and smashed into the Hufflepuff table making all of them jump away from it in fright.

Blood smeared across the table and the food was splattered across the floor. The ball of light faded to reveal a girl laying in the middle of the dining table, blood almost covering her entire body.

Screams and crying burst from the students, and that's when the professors and Dumbledore got into action and ran forward, trying to move the crowd away from the fallen stranger. The marauders stood up trying to see what some of them thought to be a falling star. Students began to run towards the table with a yearning curiosity and fear. The marauders followed suit.

Remus and Peter fell behind not wanting to push any further, but James and Sirius' curiosity could not be quenched. Finally reaching the front of the crowd they could not believe their eyes. A bloody and beaten girl lay on the table.

"What the bloody hell?" Sirius and James both exclaimed never before seeing such brutality before in their young lives.

"Everyone stand _back_!" Professor Mcgonagall yelled invoking a sense of authority that not even Dumbledore could manage. The crowd jumped back as the teachers levitated the bloody half dead girl and moved out of the great hall without a word. Only a few seconds later Professor Slughorn came back in to quiet the rest of the students, but the marauders were not paying attention to him.

"Who was that?" Remus questioned with a dark expression.

"A death eater?" James asked instead.

"How? It's impossible to apparate inside Hogwarts!" Peter squealed fear obvious in his beady eyes. James, Remus, and Sirius nodded in agreement just as confused as Peter, just maybe not as uncontrollably afraid. No, what would be the fun in being afraid when they could discover what's behind this all. A new adventure awaits them, so Sirius thought.

"All I know is that we should go see who that maybe death eater is." Sirius whispered, his expression twisted into a dark frown. James felt a sense of worry go through him, he was all for an adventure and catching the bad guy, but it felt like Sirius was taking this new "enemy" a bit too personally.

"I'm all in, of course mate you don't have to question it." James nodded, looking over at Remus and Peter knowingly. Remus sighed and knew he had to keep an eye on those two, knowing if he didn't the castle would not be safe from the likes of those two. Peter was not as sure as the rest of them, and this could be seen as cowardly, but he knew full well they would be caught, but by who was his worry. He certainly did not want to be caught by the death eater. No matter though, he didn't have a choice. He was a marauder after all.

They all huddled together slowly separating themselves from the bickering students and Slughorn trying to corral them back to their respectful corridors. They all sneakily started to discuss their plans in order to get to the bottom of this strange and scary predicament.

Hermione heard whispers tickling her ear like annoying pests. She tried to move away from the sound only now noticing she was unable to move. The pain coursed through her bones like molten lava, and her arm burned worse than it ever had before. She clenched her jaw feeling the curses course through her like a war. The question is which one would get to kill her? The pain may have been the only thing keeping her alive, in reality if there was no distraction, she'd think she go insane.

Harry Potter is dead, Ron is either dead or gone, and Hogwarts is in shambles. Hermione couldn't bear to think of the past, of the times the trio had in that lovely castle. Her muggle born ideal dreams about magic were now crushed and swept under the rug called child hood naivety.

"She is waking," A murmur was loud enough to make her wince internally. Hermione's brow furrowed in confusion, blinking up at the bright light revealed no other than Professor McGonagall and Dumbledore standing above her. Her throat closed and her eyes water with amazement, she clenched the blanket having no other way to express her pent up emotions.

"Dumbledore?" She gasped tears trailing down her face. She didn't care if she was dead or if it was a hallucination, all she knew was that she was looking at an old friend she'd thought she'd never see again.

"Do I know you my dear?" Dumbledore gently touched her face, his sparkling eyes were dulled with what could only be described as melancholy. Her breathing was raspy and unable to go down her throat without causing some sort of paint, but she pushed through it, wanting to look at the miracle before her. Her eyes grew wide like a doe frozen in fright, her eyes never trailed from Dumbledore's.

He was wary of looking into her head, knowing deep down it would be wrong in this situation. He didn't know if he was putting the school in danger for not doing so, but he could not bring himself to do it this frail and bloody girl. This girl looked at him like a guardian that he couldn't understand. All he knew was without their medical help she would die a slow, painful death.

She couldn't form a reply as convulsions started to course through her body like an ocean engulfing her in waves of pain. Curses split her skin all over her body, repeatedly opening old wounds that is causing a huge loss of blood. A curse was changing her body temperature to unbearable heat that felt like was melting her brain from the inside.

Dumbledore and McGonagall jumped away from the bed giving the girl room to thrash and scream while Poppy Pomfrey worked on her. Dumbledore looked on in grotesque amazement not fully understand how such a young frail girl could survive everything that was inflicted on her. Mcgonagall turned away covering her mouth in horror with her shaking hand, not wanting look the pained youth anymore.

Her cries echoed throughout the Hospital Wing and everyone in the room grew tense not knowing how the young girl was still alive, and if she'd be alive much long. Poppy began to sweat in fear and started to pull everything she's got. Turning Hermione over and tearing the barely sweater off her body reveals the old scars slicing open repeatedly, but what caught the three adults' eyes was her arm.

Written into her arm in large bold scars was the word 'MUDBLOOD.' It bled from her arm like it was fresh and oozed to the floor. Poppy attacked that first and began to heal it with medical herbs and spells, but once she finished the word was slowly carved back onto her arm. As if the wizard who did this was doing it all over again. They all gasped in horror not knowing just how long it would take to have this girl back into normal condition. Professor McGonagall didn't know if she would even survive.

They surrounded the bed, all determined and ready to discover how to heal her from each individual curse, no matter how long it would take they would be there for the frail young woman.

 _ **7 hours later at 3 a.m. in the Hospital Wing…**_

Finally one last spell was put into place and one last jar of strange liquid was put on Hermione's scarred body. Every individual mark would scar on the girl, but the adults all agreed it was just miracle they could save her. Both Dumbledore and Professor McGonagall agreed to put a barrier around her in case she's an enemy, but they did not feel good about it. Poppy went back to her office deciding to sleep in there in case she is in need of anything, fretting over the young lass.

They all tiredly left the girl one by one to her own fitful sleep.

That's when the marauders got the chance to sneak into the Hospital Wing, all under noses of some of the most powerful people in the Wizarding world. They all grew smug at thought, even snickering in disbelief, but as they stepped closer to the girl their giggles stopped abruptly. Luckily for Hermione she was covered from head to toe in bandages and a hospital gown.

"Do you think she'll survive the night?" Peter asked fear laced in his voice. They all shushed him underneath James invisibility cloak, Peter's cheeks heated up in embarrassment.

"I don't think Dumbledore would leave the room to let the girl die." Remus answered, his eyebrows scrunch up in fearful curiosity. Who could this person b? Is she a part of the war? Was she on the side of the good or the one who must not be named? He did not want to get any closer to the strange victim.

"Who would such a thing?" James blanched in horror, anger sparkling in his eyes like a fire.

An abrupt stir from the girl silenced the marauders quickly, waiting to see what would happen next. Hermione opened her eyes to see the dark walls of the Hospital Wing in Hogwarts, confusion and displacement unnerved her. Forcefully moving the upper half of her beaten body she looked around the wing sensing a presence. She swore she heard Harry only a second ago. Hopes filled her no matter how much she tried to bottle them back up.

"Harry?" She called out knowing she would not get an answer. As soon as she gave up on the thought of ever seeing her beloved friend four people emerged from the shaky shadows, loudly stumbling upon her bed.

"Hello, I'm James and these guys are my mates. What's your name?" A head of raggedy black hair questioned, his bright grey eyes narrowing in on her. The others moved closer giving her better look at them all, but just barely. All of them still resembled pale silhouettes with floating eyes, Hermione mused.

"Um, I'm Hermione." She forced out of her sore throat and clenched the blanket as her nerves began to rise. For some reason her conciseness really didn't want to tell them her name. Usually she'd go with her gut but she couldn't help but latch onto the human contact that was offered. Even if she was still dazed and drugged.

"Well, you know me." James smiled unabashedly pulling out all of his charm in this introduction, Sirius noted. "This guy is Sirius, he's dog so don't go anywhere near him." He tugged on Sirius's shoulder in excitement, Sirius just laughed at the description. "The guy over there sulking in the corner is Remus, he's a mood killer to anyone and everyone." Both James and Sirius laughed at the apt description, from where Hermione sat she thought she saw Remus roll his eyes. "Lastly, this is tiny Peter." James engulfed said Peter in a bear hug, carrying him off the ground in the process. All I heard from the boy Peter was a faint squeal.

Hermione nodded not fully comprehending the information but trying to anyway, even going so far as to label them in a file in her brain's imaginary office of information. Being drugged does not hamper Hermione's amazingly resourceful skills. Her brain nagged her as she though over each name, an itch that bothered her to no end. The boy, James, was the only one that spoke and reminded her of so many things but she could not put a name to why.

"I'm quite drugged out right now so do forgive me if I forget we've ever met." Hermione warned, not knowing if she was truly joking or not. But they all laughed anyway. She could feel a connection between these group of boys, a connection so strong it reminded her of Ron and Harry. The memories of the three of them were so vivid that she felt weak thinking about the losses. It was not a good time to barricade in post-traumatic stress disorder and barricade herself in the loss, but it was hard to ignore. "Why are you here?"

"We are here to ask you questions!" James quipped trying to look serious, but Hermione only laugh at his stern expression. Her giggles soon morphed into fanatic, haunting laughs. James face fell glancing back and forth between his friends and the maybe death eater.

She laughed longer than would be considered appropriate in normal company, and the haunting sound of insanity lingered that only Sirius deciphered. Sirius grabbed James by the shoulder forcing him away from the bed, he did not trust this girl. Coming from a family known as the mad blacks gave him insightful knowledge on who was mentally stable. He didn't want to risk an insane girl grabbing at his friends.

"Are…are you okay?" Peter muttered asking the girl, a tense pause later and Hermione sighed.

"I don't think you should be here." She claimed laying back down on the cot, too drugged to stay sitting up.

"Why?" This time Sirius was the one to ask, not caring that James was giving him a dirty look. Sirius was not one to step around people's feelings or take things gently, he was more of a rock the boat type of person.

Hermione paused, feeling her murky mind send warning bells, but she could not decipher why. She closed her eyes not caring if there were people in the room, her body was winning over her practical mind.

"Because those are the rules." Hermione's old prefect motto rang in her mind like a welcoming hug. Even if she broke the rules a lot she blamed its necessity in the moment, but if there was no reason then she would not participate. Like not giving Harry and Ron answers to a test, and she was glad that she held firm in her motto.

"Oh?" Sirius mumbled completely dumbfound. How would some girl dropping from the sky know about the after hour rules? Was she a spy? Sirius couldn't wrap his brain around the mystery that is Hermione.

"Poppy is about to wake up, we need to go." Remus exclaimed reminding everyone where they were. They all scrambled back under the invisibility cloak, with James waving at the girl as if she was his old friend, and left the Hospital Wing. They now had more questions than answers, and they were not happy about it.

Poppy burst from her office to check on the fading girl, she was barely conscious before Poppy began her medical examination once again. Sighing and muttering to the now asleep Hermione. Hermione would not know just how much this little rendezvous would affect the future until tomorrow, where she had to face her future.


	3. Chapter Three

**Chapter Three**

 **Revelations and Distrust**

Everything in the morning was foggy for Hermione Granger, and her entire body was burning and aching in pain. She felt like a starved, beaten dog that happened to be drugged at the same time. A headache kept Hermione's teeth grinding and all she could do was open and close her eyes repeatedly to keep them from drying out. Her wild curly hair stuck up in every which way possible, somewhat resembling what it looked like in first year.

"Good morning." The soft voice of nurse Poppy Pomfrey's tickled in Hermione's ears. Hermione's foggy head cleared and her breathing grew erratic at the sight, and all she could do was repeatedly shake her head. "What wrong miss?" She question, concern evident on her face.

"H-how are you here? How did I get here? What happened?" Hermione's usually sharp mind was thinking over the improbabilities and mental issues she might be going through at the moment. Was she dead? Was this some sort of memory relapse that happens before death? She was pretty sure she died, but there was something nagging at her. Something important. A phantom pain course through her chest making her reach up and clench where her heart was, only to find jewelry dangling from her neck.

Glancing down she sneakily looked under her medical robe she saw a time turner. The time turner. Dumbledore's plan B.

Hermiones eyes filled with scared tears. Her hands shook as she looked back at the confused Poppy, still alive and well. She sobbed into her hands not believing the gift that was standing before her. Not believing the very idea of getting to see everything again overwhelmed her like a tidal wave engulfing the sand on the beach.

"Dumbledore, thank god you're here, she has become quite distressed Dumbledore." Poppy fretted looking at the frail sobbing girl, not knowing how handle such a sad little creature. Dumbledore's tall and graceful steps echoed around the wing.

"Could you please check on McGonagall for me Poppy?" Dumbledore asked warmly, giving her a hint that he wanted to be left alone. Poppy worried what he'd do to the girl but decided to trust him and left the floor in search of the professor.

Dumbledore kept the barrier around the young girl's bed, still not letting her have the chance in getting away. He may thought it was extreme, but it was best to be cautious, especially with the war going on at this time. No one could be fully trusted.

"Do you know where you are my dear?" His soft calming voice felt liked a warm blanket wrapping around her after a cold night. She remembered he used to hum a tune or two to calm the people around him, or she suspected that he did it to calm himself as well. The odd twinkle was brighter in the past and seemed to glow in the shadowy medical wing. The odd sensation of nostalgia took over Hermione, which stopped her abruptly from her sobs, and instead turned into sniffles.

"Yes, sir." She whispered not knowing quite how to handle this absurd conversation. He was dead and now he's not, Hermione didn't know if she could wrap her mind around it. She was grateful nonetheless.

"Do you know how you got here?" He asked each question with a delicate hand, not wanting to further push the girl away or overwhelm her.

"Yes, sir."

"Do you wish to explain _how_ you got here? It does not look good for you to randomly appear inside Hogwarts' walls." Dumbledore stated with an almost stern expression, but his eyes brightened with amusement. She could not hold back the small smile tugging at her lips.

"I don't know if you would believe me even if I explained myself, sir." Hermione shifted in her bed sitting up straight, mentally preparing herself. She didn't know if she was going to explain this correctly but she hoped she would get the point across.

"Hm, well it must be some story for me not to believe you." He gently put his hand over her scarred arm in a form of comfort that Hermione hasn't felt in at least two years.

"What if I told you, sir, that I have met you before?" She asked out loud, not really waiting for answer but a change of expression. "What if I told you that I'm not even born yet?" Hermione held her breath waiting for Dumbledore's reaction.

"That would take a lot of proof for me to believe," Dumbledore stated.

"How about this much proof," Hermione took her necklace out of her robe and showed it in full view for both of them to look over the odd time turner, the time turner barely had any sand in it now. Just another reminder of how she could not undo her rough travel in time, even if she wanted to.

Dumbledore's body grew still as his expression twisted into an indifferent mask, a word was not spoken. Hermione's body stiffened and wondered if this was right thing to do, or if she already messed up the grand plan. She'd never forgive herself.

"Now you have my attention, missy." Dumbledore took hold of the time turner, an expression of melancholy evident on his face.

"My name is Hermione Granger. I'm a muggle-born, born to two dentist in London and knew nothing about magic, but still accepted me with open arms. I became a Gryffindor to my utmost happiness, having read History of Hogwarts before the ceremony. This is where I first met two of my best friends and after a few mishaps involving a troll we form the golden trio, as people, especially you, would like to call us. Harry Potter, Ron Weasely and I were unintentionally wrapped up in the terror that was Lord Voldemort and his reawakening. The second war began and the three of us joined the Order of the Pheo—" Dumbledore out his hand to his lips, not wanting her to go any further.

"We cannot discuss this any further in the medical wing. Let's go to somewhere safer from prying eyes." A hint suspicion clear on his usually cheerful face. Hermione nodded trying to get out of her bed, struggling for a breath. "Not today my dear, you're in need of more rest." He stood gently pushing Hermione back into the cot.

"Sir, I'm not made out of glass, I can walk anywhere in this castle without much trouble." A scowl plastered on Hermione's scarred face, not willing to show weakness to anyone, even Dumbledore. Dumbledore's eyes twinkled with a knowing look, patting Hermione on the head similarly to how he used to in first year. A calm and sense of nostalgia fluttered at the bottom of her stomach. She let the issue go for now and instead furrowed deeper into the softest bed she's slept on in a year.

"Rest up Miss Granger. We will have much to discuss when you're finished healing." He left the wing with a graceful but slow flourish and Hermione didn't know if she was happy he left or not. Usually she loves to ponder on old projects or something she's read before that could be dissected more, but now she couldn't help but fear being alone. She used to yearn for a semblance of privacy when Harry, Ron, and her were hunting for horcruxes.

Now she just wished she could see them one more time.

"Hey! Don't push," A hushed yell came from the corner of the room, right behind another empty cot. A sudden silence fell over the room, but listening closely she could hear the shuffling of feet. Squinting her eyes a glimmer and shadow of movement was seen through the walls, and obvious sign that Hermione never thought she'd see again. She gasped, the invisibility cloak now obviously there once she knew where to look. Following the movement with her eyes she knew whoever was under there was caught. From obvious and sudden stillness of the cloak she had feeling they knew it too.

A loud grunt came from the "invisible" cloak and a tall and pale boy emerged from thin air, looking angry as all hell. He looked familiar in a sense of the way he stood and slouched in an obtuse and arrogant way. Hermione tensed, not knowing for sure if she was ready to see a familiar face. Would she be excited and happy or go suddenly bonkers? She didn't know how her psyche could handle any more stress at this moment.

"Hello?" Like always Hermione made the first move in calming the situation.

"Um, hello?" The tall handsome boy shrugged, a light flush tinting his ears, just barely noticeable because of his long wild black hair. A snicker from the corner only made his ears grow a shade brighter. For the first time in a while a smile twitched at the corners of her mouth.

"Why were you hiding under a cloak?" Her eyebrow corked in an almost sarcastic twist of an expression. Sirius gapped at her like a fish out of water, obviously not expecting her to understand what was going on.

Another boy emerged from the well-known cloak and stumbled to the other's side. Her eyes widened at the sight of the boy, his appearance so similar to Harry's that could be mistaken for twins. The only difference was the color of their eyes his confident demeanor. She froze in her spot not quite understanding what was standing before her, and hadn't thought she'd have to face these two so soon. James Potter and Sirius Black stood before her as young teenagers. They seemed to hold this mischievous vibe that Sirius and Remus used to describe in the old tales they'd used to describe in our later years.

Hermione couldn't quite cope with what was going on in this moment, so she decided to ignore the crazy time travel that shouldn't be possible and pretend she didn't want to cry when she looked at James Potter. Looking over at the younger version of Sirius Black she could understand why she didn't recognize him in the first place. After Azkaban Sirius was a pale, pale version of his younger self. The older version was sickly thin and looked like his skin was permanently coated in black dirt. His face was sunken in with the look of a sad dog even when he expressed he was happy. She didn't know what was worse; her dead best friend's look alike or the once depressed dead man?

With sudden panic she checked her arm to make sure it was covered from prying eyes, luckily it was covered bandages. Poppy probably covered it in some medical herbs to help scar it over. Hermione sighed relieved there was nothing revealed about herself or her past. For some reason she felt extremely protective of her privacy around everyone but Dumbledore.

"How'd you know about the cloak?!" James yelled appalled that anyone except the marauders could see past their ploys. She tilt her head looking like she was judging them, this made James squirm feeling like he was being scolded by his mother.

"I used one before." She stated simply with a slight shrug.

"How's that possible? There's only a few left in the world!" Sirius burst out throwing his arms in the air dramatically, getting over his embarrassing entrance.

"Doesn't _few_ mean more than one?" Hermione quipped getting a burst of satisfaction from seeing their almost disgusted faces. If Hermione closed her eyes she could believe she was talking to Ron and Harry at that moment. A flicker of pain thrummed through her heart like heart burn, an emotional reaction Hermione decided to ignore.

"Ugh, she sounds like moony." Sirius whispered conspiratorially in James ear, looking back and forth between Hermione and James. James smacked his face away leaning towards her, almost engulfing her in his shadow.

"Are you some sort of death eater?" James question a dark look coming over his face, his brows furrowing in distaste.

"If you are were not afraid to take you down!" Sirius whispered intensely, thumbing his wand ready to throw a spell or two at defenseless Hermione. Hermione tilted her head, an odd feeling of curiosity and befuddlement coming over her. She couldn't tell if these boy were being serious or not? Giggles trembled out of Hermione tight lips as tears welled up in her eyes, nothing could have been funnier in that moment other than Dumbledore walking through that door with a dress and high heels on.

"Why's she laughing?" James asked throwing a hate filled looked her way.

"I don't know. I don't feel like she's a death eater. Everyone in my family doesn't laugh like that." Sirius remarked crossing his arms resigned about not catching a death eater.

"You guys are ridiculous it makes me hurt." She clenched her sides in actual pain, her laughter seizing with a few coughs. "What kind of rubbish interrogation was that? You didn't get one answer out of me and you both quit! Amazing, the both of you are." Hermione sighed leaning into the cot not caring if she sounded crazy or if she scared the two off. Both of them ignored her remarks, even if both felt slightly offended, and rounded on her with more questions. Only of a different kind.

"If you're not a death eater how'd you apparate in the school? And why do you look like a beaten up rag doll too?" James questioned his eyebrow arching higher than Hermione thought possible for a human being. Sirius leaned forward glaring daggers at the girl not showing any sympathy, too untrusting to believe much from this strange girl.

"Hasn't your mother ever taught you manners? You're interrogating a wounded girl who was unconscious just an hour ago! You don't know me and you don't know what I went through to get here," Not caring anymore if she sounded deranged or looked like a fright. She needed to prove to them that she wasn't a danger to them, even if she had to show them something personal of hers.

Both boys eyes widened in surprise as she tore through the bandages on her right arm scared that they made her go off the deep end. Trying to stop her before she damaged herself they tried to pry her arms away, but they were too late. Unknowingly, they looked down to see a jagged bright red carving _MUDBLOOD_ written into her skin. The stilled not taking their eyes off of the brutal effect of what they could only assume was torture. Sirius and James looked across from each other, both feeling sick to their stomachs, even Sirius could not handle the sight and he was used to these things being a son of the crazy Blacks.

"Do you think a death eater would have this carved into their arms?" Hermione's cold calm voice only heightened the mistake the boys made, regret was plain on their faces. They were not known for apologizing, but even they knew what they needed to do.

"I am dearly sorry madam, and I will avenge you for what they have done to you." Sirius's charming and arrogance radiated off of him as he grasped Hermione's hand with vigor. The serious and thick atmosphere vanished with the lack of care and honesty that Sirius evoked through every word he spoke. Hermione couldn't understand how that worked, if Ron pulled that on her she would of smacked him with one of her large books that always seemed to be on hand.

James smacked him the back of his head scowling at him.

"I'm sorry. We didn't know and we apologize if we put you through any more distress. You're probably one of the last people that need to go through anymore shit than you already have." James apologized bowing with all of his body, Sirius did the same. Hermione blinked at them not quite feeling as exposed as she did only seconds ago, wrapping her arm back up she nodded to both of them.

"I'll take those apologies for now, and my name's Hermione by the way." She stated not wanting to reveal her last name quite yet, or if she should at all.

"I'm James Potter, and this is too pretty for the normal eye, Sirius Black." James wrapped his arm around Sirius's shoulder, looking like he could have dislocated it with the exuberant energy that was radiating off of him. Sirius shrugged now done with expelling that overly sugary charm he put into his apology.

"Nice to meet you both, and may I ask why you were both in the hospital wing yesterday?" Hermione bit out with politeness that could kill, that was her mother always said at least. Bite people with politeness.

"Well…" James stammered looking to the floor with ashamed expression.

"We thought if you were doped up you would be easier to interrogate. We thought you forgot...because you were pretty doped up." Sirius's spiel only made it sound odder with the bored look he wore. It made Hermione want to pinch his ears like how Mrs. Weasley did to Ron.

"Thanks for your honesty." Her sarcasm was noted but overall ignored. She sighed not knowing how she got into this mess in the first place.

"Ignore him! Sirius is just a grouch with a heart of gold," James waved his hand ignoring the glare Sirius was giving him. "See, he's just asking for a hug." James went for a hug but Sirius side stepped him ignoring the hurt expression on his face.

"Wait a second, shouldn't you both be in class right now?" Hermione asked fear and alarm evident in her voice. Surprise etched on their faces they looked each other with confused expressions.

"We skipped." They exclaimed in unison laughing cheerily and grabbing each other's sides with brotherly affection.

"What? Get out!" Hermione screamed like her life depended on it. They both jerked back in surprise not understanding just how affected Hermione was at thought of skipping class for no good reason. She may have skipped a year of classes, but she at least had a good reason for it.

"What? But we wanted to talk—" James was interrupted by smack to the head by Hermione's pillow.

"Get out and go to class!" She yelled, not understanding why they didn't have the urge to flee to class.

"We'll talk to you later!" James exclaimed happily, and Sirius just waved his hand lazily strolling out like he had no cares in the world. Hermione rolled her eyes at the two's antics. She was surprised that she didn't feel as empty as she did before.


	4. Chapter Four

_**I sincerely apologize for how late this update was and can only blame it on the abundance of research I have done for this story and my first year of college. Other than that I have no excuse. I hope ya'll will be happy with this update and if any of you are willing to beta or know a beta message me! Thank you!**_

 **Chapter Four**

 **Meeting the "Maruaders"**

Sirius Black hated potions. He didn't know if it was because of Slughorn's constant manipulations in order to get him and James to go to his stupid parties, Lily sitting in front of them causing James to blow every potion back in their faces, or the fact Snape also took this class. Sirius Black was not the best at potions, but he was passable and didn't always need to study to get good grades like Remus and Peter. That was just the type of person he was, lucky. While James was awful at potions no matter how hard he tried, but Sirius thought it was partly because he was always distracted.

An explosion of purple enveloped James and Sirius in a cloud of what smelled like rotten fish. The cauldron was oozing over with purple goo and all Sirius could do was glare at James, who was trying to fix his hair that happened to look as purple as their potion.

"Are you serious? That was the third time. You're not handling the ingredients anymore!" Sirius yelled grabbing the list of items away from James.

"It's not like you'll do any better Padfoot." Remus commented from the back while neatly counting out each material decisively. Peter was stirring counter clockwise not leaving his eyes from the potion, praying under his breath it wouldn't blow in his face.

"I beg to differ! I'm not the one admiring the Broad in the middle of class." Sirius exclaimed loudly, not caring if Lily could hear him or not. Remus could only think how bad it would be for Sirius to get on Lily's bad side, at least more than usual.

"If you won't pay attention in class then shut up so others can!" Lily harshly whispered across the room glaring at James and Sirius. James looked like a kicked puppy but Sirius decided, like usual, to ignore her.

Rushing to put the ingredients together, obviously copying Remus's actions, to get the potion out of the way. He luckily put enough together when Slughorn came around the room.

"Excellent work Sirius, very precise cutting!" Professor Slughorn exclaimed patting his shoulder, a little too hard for Sirius's taste. Whenever Slughorn entered Sirius's vicinity he got a slimey feeling in the pit of his stomach. Probably from all that brown nosing he pulled on his "collection" of students.

Sirius rolled his eyes and continued to cut in silence, humoring himself with watching James, watching Lily. His love-struck puppy face is certainly something Sirius can make fun of him for later. Though the thought was amusing he could feel James and him were tense for much more important reasons. He couldn't get his mind off the frail girl in the medical wing. Though he played it off that he wasn't suspicious of her anymore, he couldn't quite believe her story either. Everything felt like a mystery meant to unfold and he wasn't about to let it slip away. He knew James would have none of it though, too much of a hero to question the girl anymore.

He couldn't help but feel guilty, but he knew there were people dedicated enough to mutilate themselves to please the dark lord. His family were those people. Loud scuffles of chairs being moved and the pattering of feet awoke Sirius of his stupor, but not quick enough before James' arm wrapped around his neck in a choke hold.

"Let's get out of here. I think Sluggy is coming for us." James whispered conspicuously in his ear. Smacking his hand away from his face James and him ran out of the class with Slughorn on their heels. Remus and Peter waited patiently seeming to look quite done with the both of them.

"Please tell me someone did their Transfigurations homework." Remus grumbled as he looked over each one of their hands for their books and paper.

"Sorry, no can do Moony. That would be a lie," Sirius bowed in apology grabbing Remus' hand and squishing the life out of it. "and I would never lie to you."

Remus pulled his hand away disgusted with himself and the people he spends his time with. Of course they didn't do their homework and he should of known Peter's guilty expression from a mile away. He sighed in resignation.

"I'm not giving you my homework."

"Welp, you didn't tell us you could read minds!" James shouted throwing his hands around Peter as if scared.

"Yes, I've been reading them this entire time and I don't like it when you think about Lily that way in Potions." Remus's deadpan response reached not only the marauders' ears, but also Lily's.

"You're disgusting Potter! I don't even know how you became Head Boy?" Lily shouted picking up her pace and leaving them in the dust.

"Moony!" James whined hitting Remus in the arm. Remus took the hit easily ignoring the bigger than average baby beside him.

The halls were slowly dispersing as students trailed down to their rightful classes. The marauders looked on and slowly separated themselves from them, and sneaked towards their favorite secret passage. Well, one of them.

Peter happily knocked on the third knight at the end of the hall and the secret path slowly revealed itself. They all snuck in without a second glance. A secret passage they found in the middle of their second year and one that gave them quick access to Transfigurations. The dark passages were now memorized in Sirius's eyes. Every nook and cranny.

Stumbling out of the passage they found themselves just a few feet away from Transfigurations and happily strolled into the classroom. People just started to come in while the marauders lounged in their usual seats. Professor McGonagall in all her glory transformed from a cat to her original self as per usual. Sirius thought she did it as some sort of silent bragging. He didn't think she was petty for doing so, because if he could show off his Animagus he would. Especially if he could scare off the first years with it.

Slouching in the uncomfortable stools he decided to peer at his classmates, and sadly very few Gryffindors remained in the N.E.W.T's level Transfigurations. A hard class to get by with the professor being so hard to please, nothing at all like Slughorn whom likes to play favorites. Luckily for him the marauders were already ten miles ahead of the rest when it came to this class. Besides, most normal people wouldn't want to be in Transfigurations on a Monday morning. Professor McGonagall's no-nonsense attitude didn't give Sirius any room for a quick nap.

"There are a number of factors a wizard must take into account when carrying out Transfiguration spells. The intended transformation (t) is directly influenced by body weight (a), viciousness, wand power, concentration, and a fifth unknown variable, as described by the following mathematical formula I taught for first year. Can anyone tell me why these factors are so detrimental to Transfigurations?" Professor McGonagall got straight into her lecture like we haven't forgotten nearly all of last year's work. Their professor slowly started asking harder and more complicated questions as the class went on, and even Evans was having a hard time keeping up.

"What is more complicated, to vanish an object or to create one?" Professor asked the class, almost willing it to answer her. No one rose their hand, not even Remus."No one? How bout you Ms. Evans?" McGonagall pointed her hand to Lily's direction. Lily was usually confident when it came to...pretty much every subject, but today she looked like she was about to puke.

"To vanish an object is to have it simply disappear from existence, or otherwise, into nonbeing. It's more complex than its counterpart, Conjuration, due to the simplicity of harnessing the power around you to create magic out of thin air compared to completely eradicating an object or creature from this plane through the use of magic." Lily quoted nervously almost seeming unsure about the entire answer. James couldn't take his eyes off her.

"That is correct Ms. Evans, 10 points to Gryffindor." Lily smiled brightly but she could feel the tense and dark stares from the other side of the room. The Slytherins did not seem amused. Lily kept her head up high trying to not care about their opinions and willing herself to listen to the lesson. James glared at the other half of the room ready to fight anyone that might say something about Lily. James considered himself as non-confrontational no matter how much Lily begs to differ, but he won't let anyone hurt Lily.

Both James' and Lily's small interlude was pushed back as the class went on without a hitch. Other than the entire class being nervous and confused by the new subject material the class was going smoothly. Sirius considered that a miracle.

Sirius's brain was muddled with scientific equations and it was only the first day of classes. He may be a natural genius, and might not have to take notes 24/7, but he had a bad feeling he might have to read the assignments this year. He was not looking forward to it, and he certainly didn't want his reputation of being lazy being tainted. Remus would not be happy with the way he was thinking right now. Looking over he saw Remus hunch over the table almost leaving no room for poor Peter to write his own note, he looked to be sweating bullets. I guess Remus has to worry for himself this year, and that means less opportunity to rope Remus into their pranks. These N.E. better not get in the way of their final year.

What Sirius has been putting off thinking about for the past hour and half came back tenfolds plus a large amount of suspicion. Though thinking about the N.E. interrupting his last year at hogwarts seemed scary enough now he must worry about this stranger. Though she seemed normal Sirius couldn't help but think it was all fishy, and he didn't like not knowing things going on at _his_ school. He may have played it cool in the moment but he was definitely not letting his guard down any time soon. James may be okay with her but Sirius thought maybe it would be better if he talked to her alone. Away from James so she wasn't able to trick him.

Unlike James, Sirius was used to being lied to and knew how to tell a lie apart. Dissect it even. He might even say was also a good liar and was maybe not so proud of that, being known to be bluntly honest about everything. He guessed his family got to him too soon, and he didn't want to think about that.

"Aren't you coming Sirius?" James nudged Sirius's slumped shoulder. Sirius looked from his hands with an inquisitive stare. "Are you alright man? It feels like you've been off all day." James muttered scrunching his brows upward. Sirius slapped his face away from him as he languidly stood up, always seeming to stretch every time he moved.

"Its nothing. I'm just sick of classes," Sirius yawned moving behind the awaiting marauders. Deciding not to look over at McGonagall's disapproving glare. Remus snorted loudly seeming not to believe his ears.

"We've just begun! How can you already be sick of classes?" Remus laughed leading the marauders towards the dinning hall. The paintings on the walls seemed to be murmuring to each other more loudly than usual because Sirius's ears were starting to ache. Sirius felt on edge and and had an itch needing to scratch, only he knew James wouldn't understand. Slowly trudging behind the rest of his friends and classmates he sleuthed off away from the rest of them. James was running towards Lily hoping she'd sit next to them while Remus and Peter were chatting about potions. Luckily for him they were all perfectly distracted and that meant he didn't have to give any stupid excuses.

Swaggering to the stair he slowly but surely arrived at the doors of the hospital wing. He could do it all he had to do was ask a few questions that didn't seem extremely suspicious and once he was satisfied he'd leave. He clenched his hands into fist repeated trying to get blood back into his naturally cold hands over and over again. Taking in a huge gulp of air he pushed the door open slowly but surely. Glancing around the vacant hospital wing he squinted his eyes hard trying to find her bed.

There she was laying down on the bed still as statue looking like it hurt to breathe. The smell of blood seemed to cling to her making Sirius scrunch up his nose. By now people would say it was time to call it quits and believe the poor girl lying almost dead on the hospital bed. This did not deter Sirius like it would most people. He was not forgiving, and he mistrusted everyone who wasn't the marauders and James' parents. So he certainly wasn't giving up all because it _looked_ like she wasn't capable of hurting the people he loved. He wasn't giving it up to chance or fate.

Sneaking slowly into the room on silent feet he felt his heartbeat speed up by tenfold. Rarely was Poppy not at her post so she was either eating with the rest of the school or she was in her office not too far away from the hospital beds. He could only hope that she decided to eat with the school on the first day of classes, even if there was a sick person in her hospital wing.

"Why are you here? Shouldn't you be in class?" A small and rough voice startled Sirius. Hermione opened her large brown eyes and seemed to freeze him in his place. Even though they spoke not too long ago it felt like a whole other person. An act. Sirius almost felt gloating if he wasn't so terrified. "Well?"

"I don't believe you." Sirius's tone took on a dark tone and his entire demeanor changed from sluggish slacker to dark and ominous.

"What don't you believe?" Hermione's strained voice barely reached a whisper. Her entire body was stiff with tension.

"Everything."


End file.
